Finance Ministry: So long as competition in the cellular market is not expanded, the mobile carriers should not be allowed to enter the international calls market.
Sources inform ''Globes'' that the Ministry of Finance has reservations aboutt allowing Israel's mobile carriers from becoming an international calls carriers as well. The ministry believes that so long as competition in the cellular market is not expanded and new carriers do not enter the market, the mobile carriers should not be allowed to enter the international calls market.
The Ministry of Communications' regulation that prevents mobile carriers from being international calls carriers expired on August 28. Following the expiration, mobile carriers can apply for international calls licenses.
Last week, international calls carrier 018 Xfone Communications Ltd. applied for a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) license.
Ministry of Communications' policy seems to be to keep mobile carriers out of the international calls market for now, so Minister of Finance Yuval Steinitz's approach to Minister of Communications Moshe Kahlon seems to strengthen the Ministry of Communications.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on August 29, 2010
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